If you’re looking for a play that breaks your heart, tickles your funny bone, and leaves you reflecting on love, life, and the very idea of closure, The Meaning of Malar might just be your ticket to an unforgettable evening.
Back by popular demand this May, theatre group Karpanai Kudhirai’s much-talked-about production is ready to rattle audiences once again.
“If I had to summarise the play in three words, I’d say raw, gut-wrenching, introspective,” says actor Snehaa Sesh, who plays the titular role. The play explores Malar’s journey from childhood to her late 20s, focusing on her relationships and the emotional struggles that come from being misunderstood.
“It is essentially about her relationships and her struggles. And what she wants from a relationship. And how it is often misinterpreted by people,” says Vedarun, the director and writer of the play.
“She’s beautifully grey,” Snehaa says. “There’s a certain freedom in playing a character who isn’t all good or all bad. We’ve been working on this for months, and still, every time I get on stage, I discover something new about her.”
At the core of the play is the theory of attachment, inspired by Amir Levine’s book Attached. “It talks about attachment styles in relationships. And how people sometimes get stuck in insecure attachment styles... That got me thinking, what does this mean in an Indian, especially a South Indian context?”
Rather than being a psychological case study, the director uses these ideas as a springboard to create deeply felt characters.
The structure of the play is non-linear, unfolding across two distinct relationship timelines. Malar shares screen time with two characters: Kumar, played by Sadasivam Suryanarayan, and Benjamin, played by Rajbarath Balamurali. Between these scenes are interspersed stand-up comedy routines performed by Malar, revealing her internal monologue through humour and irony.
Staging-wise, the team chose to embrace minimalism but with symbolic richness. The stage design deliberately avoids transitions through blackouts.
“Across scenes, there is no lights-off or change of scene. One scene dissolves seamlessly into the other. Because, in a metaphorical sense, your past lingers, your memories linger,” says the director.
One of the play’s most striking motifs is silence, not just as a dramatic pause but as a symbol of emotional absence and the failure to communicate. "Silence does play an important role. Between scenes, there's always this moment of 30 seconds of silence... where you feel the weight of the scene."
Among the play’s most impactful moments is a discussion about divinity, belief, and the Tamil word Kadavul. "Kadavul is 'Kada' plus 'Ul'... 'Kada' means beyond, 'Ul' is inside. So, God is not just something outside but also within you," says the director. The play premiered in March 2025 to overwhelmingly positive feedback. "Almost everybody felt they could connect to all three characters. They could see themselves in some part of themselves," he concludes.
And finally, when asked why someone should watch this play, Snehaa responds, “It’ll shake you up,” with a smile. “But in a good way. You’ll walk out introspecting, maybe a little rattled, maybe a little healed. And trust me, it’s not just a play. It’s an experience.”
Ticket starts at ₹350. May 31 and June 1. At 7 pm. At Idam - The Art & Cultural Space, Kodambakkam.